Tornadoes of 2020 (SilentShadow87)
This page documents the tornadoes and tornado outbreaks of 2020. Strong and destructive tornadoes form most frequently in the United States, Bangladesh, and Eastern India, but they can occur almost anywhere under the right conditions. Tornadoes also appear regularly in neighboring southern Canada during the Northern Hemisphere's summer season, and somewhat regularly in Europe, Asia, and Australia. There were 976 tornadoes confirmed in the United States in 2020. 83 fatalities have been confirmed worldwide in 2020: 71 in the United States, 8 in Canada, three in Australia, and one in Russia. Synopsis 2020 began with near-record low tornadic activity throughout January and February. The first significant severe storms of the year occurred on March 16-17 and produced 31 tornadoes, including six of EF2 intensity. After these systems dissipated, no tornadoes would be confirmed anywhere in the United States until April 7, when a large supercell complex over Illinois and Indiana produced around 40 tornadoes, including an EF4 tornado which impacted extreme western Anderson, Indiana, killing 21 people. A second outbreak in late April produced an additional 70 tornadoes across North Dakota, South Dakota, and western Minnesota , killing another eight people. May saw around 110 tornadoes, among the fewest during the month of May on record. One particularly violent EF4 tornado in Enid, Oklahoma took seven lives on May 16; the following day saw around 30 weaker tornadoes touch down across Oklahoma and adjacent Arkansas. Over the course of the next week, another tornado drought took hold, and no tornado touchdowns were confirmed until May 27, when around 50 tornadoes touched down in Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia, killing 12 people. June was by far the most active month of the year; from June 2 to June 7 a large supercell complex over Kansas and Nebraska produced around 120 tornadoes, including five of EF3 intensity, resulting in 15 fatalities. Later in June, another system would produce 180 tornadoes from Texas to South Dakota, beginning with a derecho ocurring on June 21 which spawned an EF4 tornado in rural Kansas which broke the record for the fastest-moving significant tornado in recorded history. The same system would later stall over northern Nebraska, producing two more deadly EF4 tornadoes which struck the neighbouring towns of Springview and Ainsworth. Tornadic activity was slightly above average over the course of early to mid-July; while no lives were lost, several significant tornadoes occurred in Texas, New Mexico, and southern Oklahoma between July 12 and July 16. Another tornado drought began on July 20 and lasted until August 11; on August 12 a small outbreak of 24 tornadoes impacted the state of Michigan, killing one person. Throughout the rest of August and into late September, tornadic activity was below average, with less than 20 tornadoes reported over the course of these six weeks. The month of October saw another near-total tornado drought, with only three confirmed tornadoes during the month. November, however, saw above-average activity throughout most of the month; 60 tornadoes were confirmed on November 18-19 in the state of Ohio, including two of EF4 intensity. December saw near-average activity throughout much of the month, with slightly above-average activity between December 22 and December 26. Notable outbStreaks March 16-17 A series of fast-moving supercells began tracking over Iowa and Nebraska in the early morning of March 16, producing several weak tornadoes which inflicted minimal damage. The first significant tornado of the outbreak was a low-end EF2 which impacted western Kingsley at around 1:50 PM, injuring around two dozen people. A second EF2 touched down around an hour later, causing damage to a nearby barn and killing several livestock. During the evening and into the early morning of March 17, more weak tornadoes impacted northwestern Iowa and neighbouring Nebraska, as well as extreme southeastern South Dakota. An EF2 tornado impacted a farmhouse south of Sioux Falls at around 5:20 AM on March 17, killing one person; immediately afterward an EF0 and an EF1 tornado impacted Sioux Falls itself. The system began to weaken in the early afternoon of March 17, producing two more EF2 tornadoes near Wayne, Nebraska and Storm Lake, Iowa. Six EF0 tornadoes impacted Norfolk, Nebraska between 3:20 and 3:50 PM, though no fatalities and very few injuries occurred. A final EF2 tornado impacted Hanover, Iowa at 4:10 PM before the supercell complex scattered and dissipated. April 7, 2020 tornado outbreak May 16-19 May 27 June 2-7 June 20-25 November 18-19 Category:Outbreaks Category:Tornado Seasons Category:Violent Tornadoes Category:Violent Outbreaks